My sister got a nurse cow from a dairy. At a certain age their udders are measured. If they don't work out for the dairy, they are sold. The two bottle babies took right to the cow, and all three are chewing their cuds in a hay nest. Not sure it is cheaper than buying powdered milk, but it is easier.
Much easier, and if you are going to feed bums repeatedly, a nurse cow is a good idea, but she needs to be bred occasionally to keep her in milk. Dairy cows are not very common around here, so hard to come by. I'd prefer if the cows just took care of their own calves, so I didn't have to worry about it. Mine are finally eating out of a trough, so I don't have to wait for htem to finish their bottles, and I'm working on getting them on calf starter feed.
Yes, the nurse cow is bred. This should work out well for her since the local farmers know my sister will take any bottle babies. She mooed forlornly for two days for the babies she left behind, but now she is content with her two new adopted ones. She was rather poor; my sister is enjoying fattening her up and getting her to the vet for checkup. She is a jersey cross.
I'm not sure about Jerseys in particular, but dairy cows in general tend to be a bit bony on top, even when at a good weight, it seems to be a by-product of high milk production desired in dairy breeds. So a dairy cow likely will never be as filled out as a beef breed.
I've heard that, and we used to milk cows when I was a kid. We had Swiss. But this girl was too thin, and wormy. She's looking so much better already. Once the dairy decides cows won't work for them, I guess they just get sold off and passed around and used. My sister will take good care of her. This cow has such a kind face. I will take a picture next time I'm there. So nice to see the three of them chewing their cud in the shelter.
The top took so much sanding that I was lucky I could remove all the damage and still retain the pattern!
